Okay, I admit to making “squeeee!” noises when I saw this. It’s part of a fabulous fund- and awareness-raising campaign which pairs rock stars with science stars:

That’s Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart on the left and right, flanking Nobel laureates Phillip Sharp and Elizabeth Blackburn. Since Heart’s music was practically the soundtrack of my teen years, I had a little fan-geek attack at the idea of them lending their faces and names to the cause of science.

The campaign is called Rock Stars of Science — since, of course, scientists are rock stars too. As the campaign notes, “Being a Rock Star is about the same amps, thunder and art it’s always been. But these days, that title applies to anyone whose genius moves the crowd — whether they’re onstage or in the lab.”

There is a lot of genius in this world, regularly displayed by people who operate in general obscurity while learning, inventing, creating, and advancing both our understanding and knowledge. These stars rarely get any credit outside their own field, and unless their research is of interest to governments or corporations, they rarely get much in the way of funding, either. I will happily support any campaign which attempts to shine a little light on these “rock docs,” as RSOS calls them.

(However, my enthusiasm is tempered somewhat by the fact that I only recognize one other musical star — Debbie Harry — out of the additional six who are featured on these posters. This is just one more bit of unnecessary evidence that I am musically over the hill.)

About Oregon Expat

Sometimes the best view is from the outside, and an American expatriate living in Portugal is, in many ways, outside of both nations. The views can be spectacular. I'm also a science nerd, Mac dweeb, and grammar geek, so the posts in this blog tend to be eclectic.